PARIS, April 9 Reuters Investors are bracing for a steep slowdown in luxury sales when luxury companies report their first quarter results, reflecting lacklustre Chinese demand and comparisons with last year when the lifting of COVID curbs in mainland China boosted sales.

LVMH, the world39;s biggest luxury group, is first to report on April 16, followed by rivals Kering, Prada and Hermes a week later. Burberry and Richemont follow in May.

A surprise warning from Kering last month that first quarter sales would be down by 10 rather than 3 expected by analysts has already cast a cloud over the reporting season.

The group blamed a slump in sales in Asia from its star label Gucci. But its poor performance prompted concern that other high end fashion labels might be also struggling in China.

We39;ve got a lasting crisis and we don39;t know where things are heading, said Olivier Abtan, consultant with AlixPartners.

All growth engines have been off for number of quarters, he said, describing the slump as unprecedented.

Chinese tourists in Hong Kong, Macau and Singapore also do not seem to be the spending kind, according to analysts at HSBC.

Kering39;s problems in China are part of the reason why its valuation is lagging that of rivals. Its present 12 month forward pricetoearnings ratio of 16 compares with 24 for LVMH and 51 for Hermes, according to LSEG data.

Kering shares have lost 15 since its warning, with LVMH down 7. Hermes, seen as less vulnerable than rivals…